Pagoda Blog

Scams Exploit Boston Marathon Explosion

April 18, 2013

Malicious actors are exploiting the April 15 explosions at the BostonMarathon in attempts to collect money intended for charities and tospread malicious code. Fake websites and social networking accounts havebeen set up to take advantage of those interested in learning moredetails about the explosions or looking to contribute to fundraisingefforts.

For example, the Twitter account @_BostonMarathon was created shortlyafter the explosions took place. The account stated it would donate $1for each retweet and was crafted to closely resemble the legitimateBoston Marathon Twitter account (@BostonMarathon). This account hassince been suspended by Twitter; however, the likelihood that similarsocial media accounts will surface remains high.

Phishing email campaigns are also circulating using subject linesrelated to the Boston Marathon explosions. Do not open unexpectedattachments or click on links in suspicious emails, even if the emailappears to be from someone you know.